Number 701 - 30th November 2013

BBC's 'Help! My Supply Teacher is Still Magic' wins BAFTA for Best Children's Entertainment Programme, London, November 2013. Left to Right: Magician Fergus Flanagan, Magician and Co-writer John Archer, Magician James Went, Show Creator and Executive Producer Anthony Owen and Series Producer and Co-Writer Nick Hutchings. Go backstage at awards.bafta.org. 30.11.13

The Session is just six weeks away! The convention is renowned for introducing new talent to the UK magic scene. This year will be no exception. Ben Train from Canada and France's Father Alex and Pierre-Marie Lazaroo will all be making their first-ever UK appearances. They'll be joining Guy Hollingworth (UK), Bebel (France), John Guastaferro (USA), Joe Barry (UK), Hector Chadwick (UK) and many other names, together with more performers (who will not be announced!) for two secret events. The Session, Cheltenham, January 11th-12th 2014. Tickets are selling faster than ever for what will be yet another sellout convention. www.sessionconvention.com. 30.11.13

More shenanigans... The organisers of Shenanigans the Irish magic convention are delighted to announce that Morgan & West and Quentin Reynolds have been added to the line up for next May's convention. They join John Archer and Juan Tamariz for what promises to be one heck of a weekend: "Morgan & West, the time travelling Victorian magic duo will entertain, enlighten and astound you in equal measure. They will lecture (including their 2 person mental act), perform and hang out over the course of the entire weekend. Quentin Reynolds, a native of Dublin, now living in Manchester, is generally regarded as one of the top children’s entertainers in the whole wide world. In addition, Quentin is an accomplished and highly regarded mentalist who performs regularly for private and corporate functions. More recently he added the title of close-up magician to his résumé with a near on 6 year residency for Manchester United FC. Quentin will perform, lecture and generally be his knowledgeable and brilliant self all over the course of the weekend." Shenanigans runs from 2nd-4th May 2014 in The Crowne Plaza Hotel, Blanchardstown. Full registration is unbelievable value at €120 and includes dealers, over 9 sessions, Friday Finger Food, Saturday Gala Dinner and Sunday Lunch. And you'll get to hang out with Señor Tamariz! Full details at www.irishmagicconvention.com. 30.11.13

Dangerman: The Incredible Mr. Goodwin. "Jonathan Goodwin is a man who combines the skills of Houdini and Superman. He is the new breed of escapologist and a professional danger-man, putting himself in the most extreme situations and dodging death every time. Share the tension and excitement as he attempts spectacular feats of out-of-this-world bravery, agility and physical strength. These include racing to unlock himself from a rocket-launched car before it drags him off a 200-foot cliff and fighting to the surface after being buried underground – after first being bitten by a venomous snake. He also free-climbs up a towering office block and attempts an incredible headline-making stunt hanging by a burning rope from the iconic London Eye! Special features: beginnings - going viral - masterclass - 3 exclusive stunt masterclasses - behind the scenes - the night hacker - when things go wrong." DVD, 225 minutes, published 25th November 2013, available from Amazon.co.uk Click Here. "Dangerman and Escapologist Jonathan Goodwin, Britain's 21st Century Houdini" Click Here. 30.11.13

Tom Mullica is the first name to be announced for next year's International Magic Convention, returning for the first time since his triumphant performance there in 1993. www.internationalmagic.com. 30.11.13

The 2014 Scottish Association of Magical Societies Convention will be taking place in The Park Hotel, Kilmarnock on 2nd, 3rd & 4th May 2014: "Acts booked so far include: Oliver Tabor, a young man who took the IBM British Ring competitions by storm - we are delighted to have him appear at our convention; Russell Brown, Children's Entertainer, living and working in Blackpool; Juggler Slava Frolov and Mark Shortland, Comedy Magician and four times winner of the IBM Comedy Award. The above gentlemen will be appearing on the Gala Show, and will also be performing close-up and lecturing." Kenny Kerr. www.scottishassociationofmagicalsocieties.co.uk. 30.11.13

Francis Menotti's British Lecture Tour, April 2014, now booking. Joel Dickinson writes: "Are you a member of a local magic society? Francis Menotti's British lecture tour is currently scheduling for 2014 and your club/society has the opportunity to learn, create and engage with Francis in his just-over-two hour lecture. This is not a 'theory' lecture to bore the crowd with vague conceptual ideas on 'being creative'. Nor is it a dealer demo or a 'trick-a-minute' lecture that barrages the magicians with too much material that they’ll never use. Rather, Francis takes a 'live-by-example' approach to teaching magical creativity. The tour has started taking bookings, don't miss out on this opportunity." For full details contact Joel on 0771 584 7691 or email info@joel-dickinson.co.uk. 30.11.13

Morgan & West's Magical Menagerie. "Roll up roll up! Time travelling magicians Morgan and West bring you the UK's finest magical talent psychics, conjurers and prestidigitators live and in captivity! In December we are joined by magician Ian Keable and mentalist Colin Cloud. Tuesday, December 3rd at 7.30pm at The Old Fire Station, 40 George Street, Oxford OX1 2AQ (Map). Tickets £8.50, from www.wegottickets.com/event/230359 also see www.morganandwest.co.uk. We are sad to say this will be the final show of the Magical Menagerie. Morgan & West would like to express their gratitude to all of the amazing acts and fantastic audiences they've had at the Menagerie over the past year. www.morganandwest.co.uk/live-dates. 30.11.13

Antonio Zip is a new comedy magic character by Thomas Anthony for magic dinners and conventions... "Antonio Zip mixes mime and comedy with a hint of magic. Fancy something different? Check out www.antoniozip.com". "The Amazing World of Antonio Zip is an original act combining music, magic and mime. If you are looking for something a bit different for your magic convention, dinner or event I can highly recommend this act. You will not be disappointed as your audience is entertained by a riot of fun." Roger Woods, President, Northern Magic Circle. 30.11.13

Introducing Magicards - a new venture from Mark Leveridge Magic: Magicards are personalised Greetings E-Cards delivered complete with unique video magic tricks! Combining the convenience of E-Card delivery with a truly novel magical twist, Magicards enable anyone to send family, friends or colleagues a personalised digital card that will stand out from any others received as it comes with video of Mark presenting one of his entertaining magic tricks. Purchasers can send their card in just 4 easy stages. Firstly they select an occasion - Christmas, weddings, birthdays etc - and then choose one of the varied card designs on offer. Next they select from a range of exciting video magic tricks, before finally adding a personal greeting or message to the card. That's it! Anyone can now make someone else's special occasion truly magical by sending a Magicard. As a special launch offer, customers can send a Christmas card design to as many people as they like for just the price of a single card. Magicards can be found at www.magicards.co.uk and can be used for all types of special occasions - there are even cards and magic videos designed with young children in mind. 30.11.13

The Magic Circle Christmas Show in aid of Paul Strickland Scanner Centre, Tuesday 31st December at 2.30pm. Rina Rawal writes: The Magic Circle Christmas Show gives you the chance to tour their fantastic Headquarters, visit The Magic Circle Museum, see Close-up magic performed by some of its best magicians and then see an entertainment line-up of conjurors and illusionists that the world's most exclusive club has to offer! This is a very popular event and early booking is strongly recommended. For advance tickets call the fundraising office at Paul Strickland Scanner Centre on 01923 844290 - £30 adults, £20 under 16's. All proceeds from this event will go to Paul Strickland Scanner Centre based at Mount Vernon Hospital, in Greater London. The medical charity provides leading edge scanning services for the early diagnosis and monitoring of cancer. It receives no government funding and relies on donations to fund a continuous scanner replacement programme. Registered Charity No 298867. Venue: The Magic Circle, 12 Stephenson Way, Euston, London, NW1 2HD. Website: www.stricklandscanner.org.uk Rina Rawal, Fundraising Manager, Paul Strickland Scanner Centre, Mount Vernon Hospital, Northwood HA6 2RN Tel: 01923 844290. 30.11.13

Richard Griffin will be appearing with Britain's Got Talent finalist Steve Hewlett as his special guest on his 2014 UK tour "Thinking Inside The Box". Steve Hewlett dazzled Simon Cowell and the rest of the judges this year on Britain's Got Talent with his incredible ventriloquist skills and will tour all over the UK. More information www.thestevehewlettshow.com. 30.11.13

Wayne Dobson's Crazy Christmas Cracker! All three books: Six Masterpieces, More Look No Hands and Marked for Life for just £10 plus p&p! (normal retail £41). This special offer only applies whilst stocks last! Visit www.waynedobson.co.uk. 30.11.13

Dynamo: Top Ten Greatest Moments, voted for by viewers. 9pm on Thursday 12th December. "An exciting look back at ten tricks with the wow factor that the magician has performed, featuring well known personalities who talk about their favourites." See TV Magic. Also see www.watch.uktv.co.uk. 30.11.13

Zane's Magic Shop have just added a number of new products to their range - in stock now! Visit www.zanesmagicshop.com. 30.11.13

Professor Jon Holt will be performing at the Pythagorean Cabaret in Belfast on Thursday December 5th. The worlds of mathematics and mind-reading meet in his performance of 'So Random'. The venue is the Titanic Building in Belfast www.titanicbelfast.com. The evening will start at 24 minutes and 25 seconds past 7 on 5th December 2013 (both 5/12/13 and 7/24/25 are Pythagorean triples apparently!). Before the official start, scientific cocktails will be served to delegates and meals will be served during the interval. Also on the bill: Rhys Phillips (compere), Julie Gould, Paul McCrory, Neil Monteiro, Famelab Ireland Showcase (Tríona O'Connell, Joe Roche and Sarah Flanagan) and Huw James. This event is open to the public and is free! 30.11.13

Wannabe Wizards Wanted! Help! My Supply Teacher Is Magic is back. Objective Productions write: Are you a talented young magician, card flourisher or juggler? If you’re aged between 7-15 and have a wonderful, exciting talent we want to hear from you! If you can do anything that makes your mates go wow, we want to see it. Is this your moment to shine? Show us what you are made of, by sending us a video! Also if you applied last year we want to hear from you again! To get involved please apply through the official website and click on 'Are you a Wannabe Wizard', or follow this link to the CBBC 'be on a show' page: www.bbc.co.uk/cbbc/help/tvhelp/help-my-supply-teacher-is-magic.shtml. Objective Productions are the company behind Derren Brown, The Real Hustle and The Cube. 30.11.13

Psycho Quiz Prediction: The brand new effect from Anthony Owen - executive producer of Derren Brown and creator and executive producer of 'Help My Supply Teacher is Magic' and creator of previous hit magic effects Ultimate Oil and Water, Natural Lottery and more. Here's the effect: A genuine random spectator is asked to answer out loud three questions from a psychological personality quiz on the back page of a genuine issue of Cosmopolitan magazine. Amazingly you have correctly predicted in advance with a three stage prediction exactly which answers they will give. No pre-show. The method is totally self contained. No secret assistants or stooges, only one prediction which is genuinely written in advance, nothing is switched or changed. "Very fooling and very stylish!" Andy Nyman. "Brilliant - a baffling piece of mentalism." Pete Firman. "Exceptionally devious and very entertaining." Alistair Cook. Visit www.tvmagic.co.uk to find out more. 30.11.13

Magic at Auction. Dreweatts Bloomsbury Auctions, Godalming, December 12th. There are 109 magic lots in the upcoming Bibliophile Sale at Dreweatts Bloomsbury Auctions, Godalming on December 12th. Advertised as a Bibliophile Sale, it includes a significant conjuring collection including books, apparatus, posters, prints, cigarette cards etc. The sale catalogue is now available to view online: www.dnfa.com/cms/pages/auction/36106. 30.11.13

International News: There is a new and exciting Magic Festival launching in Australia in 2014! The Australian International Magic Festival, founded by Sydney Magicians Terence Brabazon and his wife/fellow magician Belladonna Brabazon. "We are excited to announce the launch of the first Sydney Magic Festival, which is apart of the Australian International Magic Festival. The SMF will take flight on the 25th of September 2014 and will showcase roughly 35-50+ magic shows over a five day period in the spring school holidays. We will have a fantastic mixture of shows presented by not only Sydney magicians but magicians from all over Australia and international superstars of the magic world, the 2014 headlining magician for the Sydney Magic Festival will be Shawn Farquhar. The Festivals will run annually in Sydney, Brisbane and Perth in the Sep/Oct School Holidays for roughly 3-5 days per state, giving people Australia-wide the opportunity to see some amazing magicians they might not have normally had the opportunity to see. During the Sydney Magic Festival we will be holding a special IBM meeting with the Australian President Alan Sullivan and International President Shawn Farquhar, this will be an exciting opportunity for all magicians! Our goal in the years and decades to come is to build a strong foundation for future generations of magicians and magic lovers to strengthen the magic community as a whole in Australia." Belladonna Brabazon AIMF Director. See www.ozmagifest.com and www.sydneymagicfestival.com. 30.11.13

Order of the Magi Cabaret and Comedy Competition. Geoffrey Newton PRO writes: The Order of the Magi (Manchester) held their annual Cabaret and Comedy Competition last week where member Nick Barnes (photo) from Congleton won the trophy which he has now done on a number of occasions. It was a double top for him this year as in June he also took possession of the Close up Competition Cup. This busy entertainer really is making a name for himself in the Cheshire and Staffordshire areas with many repeat bookings to his credit. Straight after the competition he went further afield to London to appear at a trade show and Christmas brings him many corporate appearances for Astra Zeneca. It was a tough competition so Nick beating his fellow experienced performers was quite a battle. Alan ‘Snaggers’ Russell the Magi’s balloon man, adapted balloons into magic with hilarious results and took the comedy prize for a very entertaining performance. 30.11.13

Adam Cooper wins Wolverhampton's William Stevens Shield. On Wednesday 27th November, the Wolverhampton Circle of Magicians held their annual competition for newcomers. There were six competitors, who were all of a very good standard. The William Stevens shield was won by Adam Cooper with an outstanding performance of close-up magic skills. Sue Oakley, secretary of WCM. 30.11.13

Congratulations to Dirk Wiedemann, winner of the Anagram Competition held during the Close Up Competition at the recent International Magic Convention in London. Dirk wins two tickets to all next year's Convention and Festival (November 11th to 16th, 2014). 30.11.13

El Loco and the dentist chair join Dings Entertainment Agency, www.dingsltd.com. Established in 1972 Dings have over 40 years experience in managing some of the UK's top variety acts, and are a main booker for Butlin's. With 75 dates already confirmed, 2014 is looking like it's going to be a very busy year for El Loco. Wayne Slater (El Loco) is moving back to East Sussex after 14 years in Devon. See www.elloco.co.uk for Wayne's new contact details. 30.11.13

Jack Avis's original notebooks for sale: "Ever dreamed of thumbing through the private notebooks of a top close-up magician? Well now you can! John Derris has the hand-written notes of one of the most prolific originators and notaries of magic of the past 60 years. Jack Avis, a man who conversed with Vernon, Marlo, James, Rosenthal, Koran, Ackerman and many others and who in his lifetime published over 600 of his own effects. There are over thirty scruffy but neatly written notebooks that contain his own ideas, plus items that he saw in meeting other top magicians during his lifetime. John Derris would like to sell them as a collection and invites offers from serious magicians and collectors. Contact John Derris europro@tiscali.co.uk." 30.11.13

The Secret Life of Uri Geller: CIA Masterspy? "For over 60 years, spanning from his childhood to the Cold War to the current day, former Israeli paratrooper and Six Day War veteran Uri Geller has been a major enigma. Is he merely one of the most convincing stage magicians in history, a multimillionaire entertainer, courted by presidents and rock stars? Or is the now 67 year-old UK resident the possessor of genuine paranormal powers, which have not only been tested and verified by the most demanding scientific laboratories in the US, but employed by the US and other western powers in secret operations?" Amazon knows, Click Here. 30.11.13

New magic shop opens in Scotland. Alan Duncan writes: "Just wanted to give you an open invitation to visit the best magic shop in Scotland for all your magic needs. Pop into the shop or visit us online. Fast efficient service. Or why not give us a call? Open Monday to Saturday 10.00am to 5.00pm. 525 Victoria Road, Glasgow G42 8BH (Map) tel. 07825 877450 www.alansmagic.com. 30.11.13

Magician (age 45-60) wanted for lead in short film project. Joshua Stack writes: "I am currently in my third year studying film at Norwich University of the Arts. I am looking to cast a magician to play my main character for my short film, which I will be making early next year between January and February. I am looking for members of the magic community located in London and Norwich. Below is a list of information about my film and the character I am casting. I believe this could be a great opportunity to gain some recognition, experience, and could potentially be used for show reels and for promotion, especially as the project is so involved with magic. Project information / Film synopsis: Production title: Magic Man; Project length: 8 minutes; Director: Joshua Stack; Shooting Location: London/Norwich. My film is about an old magician who can’t seem to impress anyone with his old tricks, until one day when he wakes up with magic powers that are unworldly. But before he gets a chance to perform with these new powers, he makes himself accidently disappear with an innocent click of his fingers. Character Information: Name: Hugo; Age: 45-60; Sex: Male; A grumpy unsuccessful magician who once had a dream to become the best performer the world had ever seen. Sadly he has not made the big time and is still waiting for the day to come. Please don’t hesitate to contact me at joshwstack@gmail.com." 30.11.13

"Derren Brown still steals the TV magic show" Click Here • "Derren Brown reveals Great Art Robbery teaser ahead of Christmas special" Click Here • ""Cosentino reveals he is set to add dance routines to his magic act after winning Dancing with the Stars" Click Here • "Home town shows for Buckingham illusionist" Click Here • "David Copperfield's Tour Bus is Now The TTC's Command Centre" Click Here • "Leona Lewis shows off a slimmer shape in an optical illusion style coat on radio visit in Manchester" Click Here • Your UK magic news is always welcomed. See you next week, Duncan. 30.11.13

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